Fionne texted him the address of a deserted parking garage in the Glades. They were going to meet on the fourth floor. Caden reached the meeting point ten minutes before the set time. As expected, Adonis and his right hand woman were already there. Fortunately, it didn't seem like anyone else was. Infrared and sonar confirmed it. The hardest part was keeping his composure as he approached Adonis from the stairwell and saw a smile spread across his lips as he opened his mouth for a greeting.

Caden punched him in the throat with his left palm—hard.

His other hand drew his custom Sig and leveled it at Fionne as she moved for her own weapon.

"Don't!" he yelled, glaring at her. He shook his head. "Don't."

She held her hands up and backed away, looking between him and Adonis, who was on his knees and wheezing for breath. Caden grabbed him by the collar and shoved him onto the back of a parked car. The barrel of his gun was pressed under Adonis' chin—a direct line to the brainpan.

Caden's dark eyes widened furiously. "So, you're selling that shit to kids now?"

Adonis coughed sharply, wheezing, "What—what shit?"

"Delta-V! Don't act coy with me, dammit!"

"We're not," Fionne cried.

Adonis huffed. "You really think I would cross that line?"

Caden pressed the barrel into his windpipe just enough to make him feel it. "I think you would cross any line you thought necessary if it meant securing your freedom."

Adonis stared at him, then shrugged. "Yeah, you're right, but what do I have to gain from marketing to children?"

"Then why did one of Jason's friends just overdose on two inhalers of it?"

Adonis blinked hard, looking off to the side. "That's…I only gave a limited supply to Sionis." A frown. "And I never developed an aerosol variant. It's too unstable, absorbs too fast. Much riskier than injections."

Caden stared into his eyes. He wasn't giving off any tells, and he was entirely too calm to be lying with a gun to his throat. So Caden took a breath and let him up, holstering his weapon with a glance to make sure Fionne wasn't going to shoot him in the back. She didn't.

"How did ΔV get on the open market?"

"A very good question," Adonis said. "I can think of a few theories."

"Ares?" Fionne asked.

Adonis' head shook. "He designed ΩV but left the development and use of any variants to me. And he prefers to kill people with violence, not drug overdose."

"Then someone else," Caden said, "someone with the chemical knowledge to adapt it to a new delivery system. Someone in Sionis' employ, maybe."

"Maybe. I'd need a sample of the variant to know for sure."

Caden arched an eyebrow. "I take it you have a lab with the proper facilities?"

"Of course."

"Discreet?"

"You know it."

"Then I'm going with you."

Adonis smirked. "Keeping an eye on me?"

"And making sure you don't screw it up. I'll let the Gotham crew know you're cooperating. They'll want details."

Adonis huffed. "Right." He glanced at Fionne. "Well, shall we?"

…

The moment the Invisible Jet returned to the Batcave, Bruce beelined for the batcomputer and compiled everything he knew about ΔV, Red Claw, Sionis, Circe—and connected a new branch for Thomas Elliot, Hush. The last Bruce had heard of him, he'd extracted Selina's heart and kept her on life support using tech acquired from Mr. Freeze. That incident had ended…badly for Elliot. Bruce and Alfred beat him within an inch of his life when he infiltrated the Batcave. He only escaped by faking his death in an explosion.

Then, to add insult to injury, Selina used every connection and dirty trick she knew to take him for everything he had. No nest egg, no golden parachute, no more friends willing to bail him out—a not-so-petty revenge for giving her a chest scar the size of a banana. Bruce's fingers froze over the keys. He immediately called Selina.

"What?" She sounded groggy and irritated.

"Thomas Elliot is back."

The line was silent a while. "Wow, not even a greeting first." Her voice sounded sharper. "Where is he?"

"Unknown. He attacked Jason's class with fear toxin."

"…he's the one who broke that maniac out of SWC."

"Yes."

"And you think he's coming after me."

"He dedicated his life to destroying mine, and my only crime was being born with decent parents."

"…fair point." Selina sighed hard. "Okay, what's the plan?"

"Lay low. I want you to stay out of this."

"Bruce, if he's coming for you, I want in. I—"

"Selina," he interrupted sharply, "he and Circe almost killed Jason."

"…what? What happened?"

Bruce sighed and rubbed his face. "We're still not sure. They hit him with a fire that's still burning on the cellular level, some kind of curse. He's with the Amazons now."

"That's…I'm sorry, Bruce."

"I can't think about that now. My point is: this is beyond even Gotham's usual insanity."

"So, magic and monsters and you think I can't cut it."

Bruce rubbed his eyes. "You know that's not what I—"

"Relax, Bruce," she chuckled softly. "I'm messing with you."

Bruce's jaw tightened.

"I think you forget Diana's not the only woman who can tell when you're spinning out. You're all scrunched up right now, aren't you?"

He sighed hard and hunched over the keyboard.

"Hey. You're gonna figure this out."

"I know," he said softly. "What are you gonna do?"

"Elliot is supremely petty in a way not even I can match, so I think an extended leave of absence is in order. Maybe I'll stop by Blüdhaven, give your boys a visit. I hear Dragoneye's doing well."

A small smile tugged at Bruce's lips. "They'll want to know about Jason. I haven't told them yet."

"Do you want me—"

"No, I'll take care of it. Tommy's in the wind for now, not sure what his next move is. The good news is, he's working with Circe."

"That's good news?"

"Ironically, yes."

"How?"

"She won't back any move that doesn't serve her agenda, and after what happened last time he was in Gotham, Tommy knows better than to come after you alone. If he goes on a personal tangent, he'll lose and he knows it."

"…right. Sometimes I forget how easily you can get in the mind of a psycho."

Bruce huffed. "I've had a lot of practice."

"Yeah. Well, I've got packing to do and a back to watch, so I'm hanging up now."

"I want hourly updates until you're with Dick and Tim."

"Yeah, yeah. Worry wart. Hey, let the kid know I'm thinking about him. When this is over, I'm bringing my cats to the manor for a bit. Have a feeling he could use the company while he's recovering."

"That's…not a bad idea."

"Thanks for the heads up, Bruce. I'll be in touch."

"Sure. Be careful."

The line clicked off, and Bruce leaned back in his seat as he felt a presence approach. A tray of coffee and a sandwich set down on the desk. He looked up to see Alfred standing with his hands clasped behind his back, outwardly stoic. He could still see the worry in the old man's eyes.

"Thank you, Alfred," Bruce said, taking the coffee.

He nodded silently. "I took the liberty of procuring a sample of Darren Hayes' blood from Commissioner Gordon. Ms. Gordon has been compiling a spectrographic scan of the Venom in his system."

He tapped a key to call the Clock Tower. "Oracle, you there?"

"You see the report?" she replied. Her voice was all tight professionalism.

"I do. The chemical structure is actively breaking down."

"It's barely been a few hours since his last dose. ΔV doesn't decay like this."

Bruce frowned and blew up the readings. "No. Either the nature of its aerosol form is making it more volatile, or someone designed this specifically to break down and destroy evidence."

"If Elliot's involved, I know where my money is."

"Agreed."

"Then there's no way to trace its origin?" Damian asked.

He and Cass approached the computer. Alfred showed them additional sandwiches from the tray. Cass ignored hers.

"Maybe," Barbara replied. "There are a few chemical signatures that have markers unique to manufacturing processes used in Gotham. Ace Chemical, Stagg Industries, even one of WayneTech's biotech branches."

"But all of those run throughout Gotham," Damian said. "You could find them in over-the-counter drugs at any corner store."

"Right. We need more data to put the pieces together."

Bruce closed the report and kept it tabbed. "I'll get in touch with Drake, see what he's discovered. In the meantime, I'm going to take a closer look at Sionis. If ΔV is being pushed on the streets, chances are he at least knows about it." He glanced at the others. "It may take a few hours, so get some rest while you can."

His gaze lingered on Cassandra, whose pallor hadn't calmed in the slightest since Themyscira.

"We're fine," Damian said.

"That wasn't a request."

Robin's hands clenched at his side, but Cass just nodded blankly and went to take off her armor. Bruce turned back to the computer and pulled up the file on Black Mask. The whole time, Alfred barely left his side, and only to keep his coffee topped off. It was going to be a long night.

…

Lucas was enjoying his night well enough. Good music, good reading, plenty of snacks to satisfy his metabolism…

Knock knock.

He froze with his teeth halfway around another slice of pizza. Luke leaned around the corner and stared at the front door of his apartment. Who'd be knocking at this hour? Why? He checked his phone. No messages.

He carefully set the pizza down and looked through the peephole. Immediately, he sped around the place, tidying up in a blink, though honestly there wasn't much to fix. His hair, on the other hand…

Luke grinned and opened the door to see Cass standing there, looking up at him. "So, I would ask how you found me, but uh…" His smile slowly faded when he saw how pale and tense she looked. "Hey, hey what's wrong?"

There was an ever-so-slight tremble in her voice when she asked, "Can I come in?"

He nodded and stepped aside. "Yeah, of course."

He closed the door behind her and watched as she just stood in his threshold. Luke frowned. She wasn't even looking around, wasn't taking in the space. She always sized up a room whenever she entered.

"Cass, what happened?"

She turned to him sharply, as if startled by the question. Her almond eyes were glassy and unfocused. Her lips moved without words, then closed and collapsed to a thin line.

Luke stared at her uncertainly. "Cass, you're freakin' me out here."

Then she blinked and met his gaze. "Jason, he…he was attacked. Hit by…some kind of magic fire."

Luke's eyes widened. Her voice was…beyond shaky.

"Is he okay?" he asked softly.

Her head shook violently. "They…" She stared at the ground with horror in her eyes. Her voice kept cracking. "His face…his arms…his…I could see his collarbone."

"Rao," he whispered. "Where is he now?"

Cass swallowed hard. "Themyscira. He's…stable, for the moment. But it's killing him as fast as he's healing. I don't think they have the faintest idea how to help, and if he wakes back up…"

Lucas watched as Cassandra started hyperventilating. "Hey, sit, here you go."

She sank into the couch, wringing her hands as she stared into the distance. "He—I—I've never seen him s-scream like that. Seen him in s-so m-much pain…"

Seen him scream? That was an odd way of putting it. Then something clicked: her first language was physical motion.

Like the incoherent thrashing of someone in unimaginable agony.

Luke's gut churned when she started to shake as much as her voice was. He gingerly reached out and touched her arm and shoulder. She met his eyes for the briefest of moments before burying her face in his shoulder. So he held her tight to his chest, every so often rubbing her back while gently petting her short hair. Cass didn't speak, didn't even make a noise. She just shook and clung to him. It was a while before she started to calm down and even longer before either of them spoke.

"My brother is dying."

Luke's heart clenched at the flat hoarseness in her voice.

"They melted his face off and I wasn't there."

His lips pursed. "If he barely survived, I don't think there's anything you could've done."

"…I wasn't there."

Luke sighed. By previous accounts, it wouldn't have been the first time she proved willing to hurl herself between Jason and something supernatural. It hadn't worked out well then either. He decided not to argue the point.

"What's done is done," Luke said. "What can you do now?"

She finally pulled back and wiped her face, eyes still a bit red. "Batman's putting together a team to track down the source of a new ΔV distributor who doesn't mind selling to kids."

Luke's brows arched. "Can I help?"

Cass looked up at him and smiled faintly. "I'll ask. He still doesn't like metahumans meddling in his city."

He snorted. "Should've thought of that before he married one."

That got a small, hoarse laugh out of her.

Luke grinned. It faded a moment later. "Where is she now?"

"With Jason and her mother. She's keeping us updated and trying to figure out what's going on."

"Okay. Then let's get back to Batman and figure out next moves, yeah?"

She nodded.

"You drive here?"

Another nod.

"…mind coming back for it later?"

Cass smiled and stood up with him. "Not at all."

Silver electricity crackled in Luke's eyes for the briefest instant before they both vanished.

…

Diana paid another visit to the healing pools as soon as Bruce left the island. Althea and her assistant were notably absent, though one of the healers was still close by. Diana gently stroked her fingers through Jason's hair, chest burning with anxiety. His eyelids fluttered.

"Epione!" she called to the other healer.

Jason's uncovered eye flew open a moment later as Epione rushed over with a clay jar of anesthetic. Diana knew from experience how unpleasant it was going down, but it should work to keep him under. Jason didn't scream this time, only hyperventilated and looked around in a wild daze. Somehow that was even worse.

Diana tipped his head up. "Drink."

Jason barely gave the jar a glance.

"Please, trust me. Drink."

She held him steady as he grimaced through it. Epione made sure he took it all down. Moments later, his breathing calmed and eyelids started sagging.

"M-Mom."

"I'm here," she said, taking his grasping hand.

"Kara…"

Diana's eyes widened. She was supposed to come over later. "I'll let her know—"

"Don't."

Diana blinked. "What?"

"Don't…tell her about this…please."

"Why?" She stared at him uncomprehendingly. "She should be here."

His eye darted open with a wild look. "No details! She cannot see me like this."

She cupped the undamaged side of his face. "Jason, I promise she will not care."

His grip tightened around her hand like a vise, hard enough to hurt. "She can't know why I'm here. Not yet." Jason grimaced, a wave of drowsiness crashing over him. He still pushed through it. "If she knows what Circe did…she'll run straight at her…and she doesn't know how to ask for help."

Diana huffed. "Have you looked in a mirror lately?"

His gaze remained steady despite his fading consciousness. "I don't care what you have to say. Make me the bad guy if you have to. But promise me she will not know."

There was something in his voice, something beyond mere worry.

It was the same edge he had when he introduced his new shield.

His grip tightened again. "Promise. Me."

Diana's lips pursed tightly. "I promise."

Then his fingers slackened, and he passed out.

Diana swallowed and thanked Epione for taking him. She called Kara's phone, trying to figure out what to say. The girl's chipper voice answered a moment later.

"Hey, what's up?" Kara asked. "I'm getting ready to head over."

Diana winced. "We'll have to postpone for tonight." She glanced at her son. "Jason's…not feeling well."

"…he's sick? Since when can he—"

"We think it's something magical, hopefully not contagious, but we don't know how it works. And if it's magic…"

"I might be vulnerable to it." She sighed hard. "How bad is it?"

Diana let out a relieved breath. "Bad enough that he had to have me call you. We're trying to keep him asleep as much as possible until we figure it out."

"Do we think he got hit in Athens? Like a booby trap or something?"

She grimaced. "No. Like I said, we're still figuring it out. I'll call you if anything changes."

"Yeah, yeah, um…let him know I'm thinking about him."

"I will. Talk later."

She hung up before Kara could ask any more questions, trying to ignore the rotten guilt gnawing at her. Diana stared at her unconscious son and frowned. He knew something he wasn't saying, something about the future—and Circe in particular. Then something from his first days with them rang in her head.

"…the whole point of all this was to fix the future. And you and Dad not being there isn't the only thing wrong with it."

If this was to keep Kara safe, she would play along for now. But she didn't have to like it.

Diana saw Althea return and hurried to match her steps. "Anything new?"

She frowned and shook her head. "There is nothing in our archives about an affliction like this. It could be an invention of Circe…or perhaps something older, something worse. I really can't say, princess, and that worries me."

"Older…"

Althea looked at her sideways. "What?"

Diana's lips pursed. "Thank you, Althea. Keep an eye on him."

She dashed back to the palace and found the queen. "Mother!"

"Diana," she greeted. "Any change?"

"He woke up briefly, but we put him back to sleep. No change in his condition, and Althea doesn't have the first clue what this is. But I had an idea about that." She waved to the back room—the astral chamber. "Athena—she knows more about Circe than most. If anyone knows about a mysterious magical affliction in her repertoire, it's her." She frowned. "And she cares for Jason."

"Do you need me to come with you?"

Her head shook. "I can handle it."

Hippolyta nodded. "Go."

So she did, uttering the inscription on the tablet that projected her consciousness to Olympus. She focused her mind on the goddess of wisdom, a flash of grey eyes before all turned to pearl tile and alabaster stone.

"Diana."

She turned at her name to see the goddess sitting next to a bowl of water. Wrappings littered her arms, and she was halfway through sponging off a small cut above her eyebrow.

Diana blinked at the sight of her. "You are under attack."

Athena tossed the rag and stood up. "Why are you here? What's happened?"

She could sense Diana's anxiety, that much was clear. There was no one watching now, not her mother, not her husband, not her children, not the protégés who were already buckling under the guilt of what had happened. Just one of the founding goddesses of Themyscira, who had saved the world in Diana's absence and guided Jason thus far. Under those gray eyes, any sense of pride or strong front melted away.

So Diana's voice cracked as she fell to her knees and bowed, face to the ground. "Please…save my son."

Athena approached and took her by the shoulders. "On your feet, my child." She wiped Diana's cheeks and spoke firmly. "This is no time to weep."

Diana took a shuddering breath and a moment to calm herself, then nodded.

Athena ushered her into a seat. "Now, tell me everything."

So she did, in as vivid detail as possible. Athena listened with cool calmness, enough to set Diana's mind at ease as she recounted the attack and its effects on Jason. By the end of her tale, the goddess's expression turned grim.

"I know what afflicts him."

Diana's brows shot up. "You do? Why does that sound like bad news?"

"Because somehow, Circe has unlocked the secrets of Stygian flame."

Diana stared at her. "Stygian flame?"

Athena nodded. "A rare chthonic magic unique to Hecate—or so I thought. It seems Circe is once again attempting to usurp her power, and doing an excellent job of it."

"The Lycabettus operation did reveal that Circe was stockpiling divine essence."

Athena's eyes widened. "What happened to it?"

Diana allowed herself a small, vindictive smile. "Jason poisoned it with Nth-metal."

The goddess chuckled malevolently. "Good boy." Her smile faded. "Unfortunately, Stygian flame is not easily cured. It was designed to kill Titans."

Diana's blood went cold. "What does that mean?"

Athena's lips pursed. "The only known cure is a cocktail of nectar and ambrosia, both of which could kill him in the wrong amount."

Diana huffed. "Forget the amount—where am I supposed to find any outside of Olympus?!"

Athena raised a hand. "Calm down. I frequently left Olympus to attend to matters on Earth—and get away from my father's prying eyes. To that end, I created several supply caches around the world. There may be one still intact."

"Where?"

"There is a catacomb beneath the ruins of the Great Library of Alexandria. I will show you what to look for."

Athena explained a series of glyphs and codes she put in place to prevent its discovery by mortals and the other gods. Diana took it all in with grim determination. When she was finished, Athena pressed her lips into a thin line.

"Diana," she said, "you must hurry. I don't know what luck allowed Jason to survive the initial blast, much less its aftereffects, but we cannot trust in that luck to keep him alive."

"I understand. We'll get it done." Diana bowed. "Thank you."

Athena tipped her chin up. "See him safely home…and send word when you do."

Diana nodded and bowed out, fading back to her own dimension to find a furious Artemis waiting in the throne room.

"Diana," she called. "What fresh hell has your boy gotten himself into this time?"

…

Donna and Cassie got busy in the archives from the moment Batman threw them out of the palace. Aside from requesting a study room and research materials from Penelope, neither had said much since. Halfway through an obliquely-written tome on ancient curses, Donna's eyes crossed and she closed the book in frustration. Over an hour they'd been at this, and not a lick of useful information.

"It wasn't fair of him to single you out."

Donna glanced at Cassie. "What?"

She frowned and kept reading. "Batman."

Donna sighed. "Pretty sure he was talking to both of us."

"But he only got up in your face."

"Jason took the hit for me."

"So?" Cassie huffed and shut her book. "We were both there. We both screwed up."

Donna's head shook. "I was with him first."

"That doesn't explain—"

"He never should've been there, Cassie."

She fell silent.

"I had ample time and opportunity to get him out, but I was so focused on capturing Dechamps. Jason had no gear, no protection, nothing except his sword; and even if he had…" Donna hunched over. "We had one job, Cassie: keep Jason out of harm's way."

Cassie shrugged. "There's more than one way to do that. You wanted to put an end to the threat so he wouldn't even need us anymore. We both did."

"But it's on us to make that happen. He didn't have to be there, and I let him stay."

"I don't think either of us could've convinced him to back down."

Donna met her eyes. "I shouldn't have given him a choice. Especially after Caephus joined the fight."

The room was silent a while.

"You really think he would've left?" Cassie asked.

"…no. But I could've tried. It didn't even occur to me that I should…" Her head shook. "He shouldn't have been there. It was my negligence that got him hurt. Bruce has every right to be angry."

"He's not the only one."

Both whirled toward the door to see Artemis enter with an agitated air.

"Fortunately, you two have a chance to redeem yourselves," she said. "We have a mission from the queen."

"Did Althea find a cure?" Donna asked.

"No. Athena did."

Both sharpened up at that.

"It's up to us to retrieve it." Artemis flinched. "Diana was…reluctant to relinquish this task."

…

"You're not going."

Diana stared at her mother like she'd grown a new head. "Excuse me?"

"Donna and Cassie failed you in the tunnels," Artemis said. "So this time, I'm going with them to ensure that doesn't happen again."

Diana whipped back to Hippolyta. "Mother—"

"This is not up for debate," she said. "By Athena's own admission, it's been ages since she's even visited this cache. Who knows what's become of it in her absence?

Her fists clenched. "This is my son!"

Hippolyta drew close. "It's because of your son that you can't go." She laid a palm on Diana's belly. "Curing him now will change nothing if he dies in your womb."

Diana's jaw clenched. She turned to Artemis. "You know what to look for."

Artemis nodded. "I do."

"Get it, bring it back. No detours, no distractions."

"Of course." She snorted and turned for the exit. "I'm not a child."

…

Donna and Cassie visibly stiffened at the not-at-all-subtle jab.

"Now," Artemis said, "since I cannot fly and both of you can, you get to decide who carries me. Figure it out quickly."

They stared at each other for all of three seconds.

Then, as one, "Ro-cham-beau!"

Cassie griped the whole way to Egypt.

…

Bruce was cataloguing Gordon's latest notes on ΔV when a burst of wind hit his back. He snapped around to see Cass and Lucas standing in the center of the chamber.

Luke took everything in with wide eyes. "Huh. So you went for the condensed setup here." He nodded slowly. "Suit up and go. Very practical."

Bruce stood up and dragged his gaze from Lucas to Cassandra. "What is he doing here?"

Cass winced and sighed. "I told him about Jason and the ΔV situation. He volunteered to help."

Bruce fixed the speedster with a searching look. His behavior at Belle Reve hadn't gone unnoticed, from his concealed entry to his anxious exit. He knew Cass had picked it up too. What did Waller have on him? He was from another universe; what could she have on him? Bruce's own research on Lucas Carlisle had confirmed his assertion about being an anomaly in the Multiverse: there was no one on Earth-1 by that name or face in any record he could find. Given the lack of data, he was more than a little leery about Cass spending so much time with him, much less making him an active part of their operations.

But his daughter was even less trusting than he was—and she wasn't known for making mistakes.

So, with niggling doubt in the back of his mind, he gave Lucas a nod. "You've been living in Gotham since January; heard anything about a new drug on the street?"

Luke shrugged. "There's always something new, especially in the club circuit where I work, but no mention of some super-steroid. Either it's incredibly new or it's not selling in the usual markets."

Damian grunted from where he finished a set of pull-ups. "A fair point." He toweled off. "Darren Hayes was uptown, upper-middle class. He wouldn't be running in those circles."

Luke glanced his way and shrugged. "I mean, you never know. Plenty of rich kids run with a rough crowd during their rebellious phase."

Damian frowned. "Not him. I checked."

Bruce's jaw tightened. Damian was taking this harder than he'd expected. He hadn't seen his son this high-strung since the Court of Owls incident. Then again, his classmate was dead and his brother wasn't looking too far behind, so maybe not so out of character. Bruce forced himself not to spiral over Jason and pulled up everything he had on ΔV.

"We're ready, boss," Oracle said over call.

"Then let's get started," Bruce said.

Moments later, everyone gathered around the Batcomputer as several video feeds popped up. When twin Cadens appeared, Cass visibly stiffened.

"Well that's a freaky Friday," Lucas said.

Caden snorted. "To no one more than me. We got the toxicology and spectrograph. Adonis, want to fill them in?"

The other pinned a side-by-side comparison of two chemicals. He pointed to the left one first.

"This is ΔV, the variant I sold to Sionis and Red Claw to…even the playing field somewhat. These are three toxicology samples taken from our test group at different points, both during active effects and in cooldown." He pointed to the other. "The sample from Hayes is…not that."

The differences were clear: rapid decay, volatile particles, and substances that weren't present in the original.

"It's not just the aerosol form causing the instability. Because of the chemical decay, I can't give you a full picture. However, I can tell that several components were added that have nothing to do with the Venom itself." He zoomed in on a particular cluster of molecules in the incomplete chemical model. "Specifically this section, the only part of it not actively decaying."

Damian scowled. "It's an opioid variant."

"Well observed; top marks." Adonis frowned. "Someone went through the trouble of undoing my painstaking work in preserving Venom's potency while suppressing its addictive nature. But the way they applied it is…more insidious than you might think."

"How so?" Cass asked.

"It's a slow release compound, hits the victim very gradually, then all at once halfway through the Venom's active period. ΔV was designed to synergize with the adrenaline rush of a fight. That combined with this opioid serves up a devastating high. Enough to cause addiction and withdrawal symptoms after just one dose."

"Yikes," Luke breathed.

Caden scowled. "It gets worse. According to Adonis—and I fact-checked him on this—the withdrawal period hits faster the more you use it, with no upper limit."

"Meaning with every hit, the time between doses decreases," Adonis said grimly. "Until your body needs an hourly fix."

Cass's eyes widened. "But that means—"

"Yeah," Caden interrupted. "This drug was designed to be a killer."

"Then Black Mask can't be behind it," Damian said.

"Agreed," Bruce said. "His empire is built on steady cash flow from repeat customers. He'd never field a drug that cuts into his bottom line." He scowled. "It's Elliot."

Caden shrugged. "With everything he's picked up from Mr. Freeze and the like, he does have the biochemical knowledge to pull it off. Question is who he's using for distribution."

"Who'd be stupid enough to encroach on Sionis' domain?" Damian asked.

"I think I can answer that."

Bruce froze stiff at the altered voice, then quickly turned his head.

"Jason," he whispered as the Red Hood strode onto the platform.

Damian immediately had his hands up. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Relax," Caden said, "I called him."

"Why?! This prodigal cannot be trusted!"

Caden gave him a look. "I trust him a helluva lot more than I used to trust you."

Damian snarled. "That says more about you than—"

"Enough!"

Bruce's shout silenced the room.

He looked between them. "None of this is relevant to the matter at hand." He met Jason's eyes through the mask. "If you have something to add, let's get on with it."

Red shrugged. "Works for me." He slid a USB drive into the Batcomputer. "I've been working with Caden to shred Richard Dragon's golden parachute since last year. Guns, drugs, anything he could use to tighten his grip on Star City or bail out." He glanced at Bruce. "Including a few shipments running through Gotham."

Damian's eyes widened. "You…you were there when Jason got stabbed last year. You're the reason he was there at all!"

Red glared through the mask. "I'm also the only reason he got out alive."

"Damian," Bruce scolded.

He fell silent but visibly seethed.

Bruce sighed. "Continue."

"One of the shipments I was tracking was a stockpile of poppies from Qurac, selectively bred to give a better high when refined. It went missing about the same time your electric man showed up in Gotham."

"When Circe started getting a foothold," Cass said.

Red nodded. "I wrote it off as Sionis screwing over Diaz and put it on the backburner, but if it was Elliot, I think I can pick up the trail again."

"How quickly?" Bruce asked.

"Already in progress. Just waiting for my rat to stop moving."

Bruce turned to the call. "We need a way to counteract the effects of this variant. Can you use the research data on ΔV to produce an antidote?"

Adonis' lips pursed. "I'd need to get a closer look at the chemical structure of this new Venom, specifically a fresh, unused sample. It'll be too degraded otherwise."

"We find the distribution hub," Jason said, "you'll have all the samples you need."

Bruce frowned in thought. "Caden, how long does it take to hit the hour-mark on withdrawal?"

"Based on our projections…about nine days."

"Then that's our timetable for a cure. Tommy's going to do everything in his power to hurt us, but he knows he can't do it directly."

"That's why he's targeting the kids," Red said.

Bruce nodded grimly. "If this drug becomes widespread, we'll have mass casualties in less than two weeks. We need an antidote before then. In the meantime, send what you have to Gordon. We need to get the word out."

"Yahtzee."

They all turned to the Hood.

He waved his phone in the air. "Rat just returned to the nest. It's go time."

"Suit up," Bruce said as he pulled his cowl on.

The others followed suit while Damian consistently gave Red the stink eye.

"How did you even get in here?" Damian interrogated.

Red stared at him for a long moment before saying, "The front door. Alfred let me in."

Damian's dumbstruck stare at the passing butler almost brought a smile to Bruce's face.

Almost.

…

It didn't take much for Hippolyta to see that Diana was going insane with anxiety. Before she could find something to distract her daughter, Diana did it herself.

"Is it just me, or has the whole island changed its mind about Jason since his first visit?"

Hippolyta's brows arched. "How so?"

"I remember how tense the sisters were the whole time he was here. But now, everyone's scrambling to help. They're eager about it. What happened?"

"I did."

Diana turned to Philippus, who looked distinctly uncomfortable.

Diana's voice gained a layer of ice. "Right. His wager for your duel."

Philippus winced. "Yes…and no. You know well that acceptance cannot be forced, even through a blood duel." She frowned. "It was not simply that he defeated me…he defeated, and then spared. He showed a forbearance I did not. In spite of my…insults and stubborn pride, in spite of his every reason and right…he let me live." She stared at the ground, unable to meet Diana's unwavering gaze. "He showed nothing but brash eagerness, and I answered that with scorn." Philippus grimaced. "It is a shame I have yet to atone for." She finally looked up and made eye contact. "But I intend to, when he is recovered.

"I am sorry, princess." She bowed her head. "I was wrong. There is no excuse."

Diana maintained her icy stare. "Good that you recognize it." The iron in her voice didn't waver a bit. "This will never happen again, will it, general?"

Philippus bowed lower. "No, princess."

"Good." Diana jerked her head to the side. "You're dismissed."

Hippolyta watched Philippus leave with a heaviness in her tread. She sighed and turned back to Diana. "I've rarely seen her so contrite." She frowned. "You didn't have to be so hard on her."

Diana glared. "I sent Jason here in good faith because I trusted my sisters to set a good example. Philippus betrayed that trust. She demeaned him, loudly, publicly. She tried to kill my son!"

Hippolyta threw her hands up. "And I let it happen! Worse, I exposed him to the gods and the same thing that happened to you. You forgave me."

Diana's eyes softened a bit. "Mother, nothing you did that day was out of malice. Even the worst of it—you were afraid that Ares was manipulating Jason's rage, and the worst part? You might've been right. But you didn't curse him. You didn't force him into a situation where his choices were to lose all credibility or take a life." She glowered. "And you weren't holding the sword." Diana turned to the door Philippus had vanished through. "Her transgressions are not so easily forgiven."

Hippolyta's lips pursed tightly. She had a point. If the same thing had happened to Diana, Hippolyta knew she'd be just as furious. And clearly, Diana had inherited her ability to hold a grudge. With a sigh, she elected to let it lie for now and focus on her grandson.

A call came in to the nearby conference room. They both ambled over to receive it.

"Bruce," Diana greeted.

From the feed, it looked like he was in the Batmobile.

"Any word on Jason's condition?" Bruce asked.

"No change," Diana said, "but we know what's wrong with him."

That got his attention.

"Athena calls it 'Stygian flame.' Apparently it's a specialty of Hecate that Circe managed to unlock. There should be a cure in one of Athena's old stashes. Artemis went to recover it with Cassandra and Donna."

Bruce nodded. "Good."

They both knew Artemis would ensure the mission's success or die trying.

"We're heading to a suspected distribution point for the aerosol Venom, designation Lambda."

Diana arched an eyebrow. "Lambda?"

"The symbol for chemical half-life," Damian jumped in. "The Lambda variant was designed to be extremely addictive with a high that is progressively short-lived."

"It's a killer, Diana," Bruce said grimly, "and Elliot is peddling it to children. Drake estimates nine days before we start seeing mass overdoses."

Hippolyta saw the dread on Diana's face as she sank into a chair.

"You were right to go back," she said softly.

Bruce's jaw visibly tightened. "You know I would be there with you if I thought it would help."

Diana shot him a small glare. "It might help me."

He winced.

Hippolyta quietly made to exit, but Bruce's voice stopped her.

"Your majesty."

She gave him a small hum.

"When we find Aeaea, how do you plan to assault the island?"

Hippolyta straightened up. "The Amazons have a fully equipped fleet to transport our legions."

"And if she can teleport the island?"

Her eyes flashed with fury. "We will scour the ends of the earth if necessary. The witch's evil has gone unpunished long enough."

Bruce nodded. "What about her thralls?"

Hippolyta frowned. "Unfortunately, most will have been under her control for too long. They will serve their mistress fanatically, even in death."

He shot her a look.

She arched an eyebrow. "Don't look at me like that. By Amazon law, attempting the murder of a royal is an offense punishable by exile at least—a penalty that means less than nothing to Circe. If she has already coopted enough of Hecate's magic to empower her thralls with Stygian flame, then she is too powerful for us to contain permanently. Only death will stop her madness." Her eyes narrowed. "And seeing as Aeaea is a rogue terrorist nation with no legitimacy, Themyscira has full jurisdiction to deliver it."

Bruce didn't look happy, but he nodded. "Understood. We're approaching the site. Let me know when they have the cure."

"We will," Diana assured him. "Be safe, my love."

Bruce nodded and ended the call.

…

Four exits, four Bats. Well, four Bats and a speedster.

A speedster Batman had denied the opportunity to scout the inside of the building. Owing primarily to the fact that Elliot knew he existed and was actively working with them. If he was behind λV and left countermeasures in place, they'd blow their cover and the rats would scatter. They needed to tap the building and figure out exactly what they were dealing with. The bugs were in place, now they just needed to listen.

Lucas was already pacing a hole into the roof gravel in between checking on each stakeout position. Robin was giving him annoyed looks every time he showed up. The Red Hood was inscrutable as ever behind that faceless mask. Batman was unfazed. Cass was the only one who seemed to appreciate his presence. He kept wondering about it, from the moment she entered his apartment.

"Anything important?" Luke asked.

Cass glanced his way and smirked, mask hanging down around her neck. "You know you could tap in and listen yourself."

Lucas snorted. "Think I'll pass. Stakeouts like this only make sense when I listen after, and only on very fast forward."

"No attention span?"

"That and I work better taking in everything at once."

"Hm." Cass tapped her gauntlet. "Well, this is everything we've gotten so far, from all the feeds."

Luke pulled up the recordings and played them all side by side at a thousand speed. They'd only been here half an hour, so parsing through it didn't take long.

Lucas scowled and turned on his comms. "This isn't just a distribution hub. It's a testbed for λV—using dogs."

Cass looked at him.

"Where'd you pick that up?" Red asked.

"Background of one of the mics—the supply closet. Must be close to a basement door. I could hear barking in the background and a din of cheers."

"A dogfighting ring," Robin said, disgusted.

"Elliot must've paid them to test his compound," Batman said. "I'll call Gordon, get him to set up for a raid."

"Don't we need probable cause for that?" Luke asked. "Or a warrant?"

"This territory is known for independent pushers," Batman said. "GCPD already keeps an eye on the area, they just can't be everywhere at once. An anonymous tip connecting this place to the attack at Shady Cove will get them looking closer."

"Might help if they had pictures."

Batman hesitated a moment. "Go."

The Revenant launched himself off the roof with a burst of silver lightning, running across buildings and phasing through the walls and ceilings. The moment he touched down in the basement, he saw the kennels: dirty, rusted, packed to the gills with breeds who were overfed and overworked. No sign of any λV yet, but that would change. Two guards patrolled the room. They might as well have been standing still as he sped into a corner office.

In less than a second, he found a large safe and started trying every combination. He cracked it in less than three seconds. Inside were hundreds of inhalers. Empty inhalers. Then he returned to the kennel and found a rack of collar rods used by dog handlers, decided to take a closer look. A nearby footlocker had a combination lock on it. This one took less than two seconds to crack. It was exactly what he suspected: hermetically sealed muzzles with an attachment for the filled inhalers sitting nearby.

He pocketed one to serve as Adonis and Caden's sample, then made a lap around the whole basement, from the kennels to the active fight ring. Took pictures of everything.

Luke was back on the roof with Cass before a minute had passed. "Got it." He tapped his forearm and sent it all to the team. "All yours." He held up the inhaler. "I'm gonna run this to Star City. Be back in a sec."

Cass nodded.

Lucas sprinted across thousands of miles in the space of minutes, zeroing in on the coordinates Caden had left them. He dropped the inhaler between the two and went right back to Gotham. Seeing them side by side was still eerie to him.

The moment he returned, Cass threw a smile his way. "I'm glad I came to find you."

Luke grinned and threw a two-fingered salute as she turned back to the building. His smile slowly faded.

"Why did you come to me?"

She turned at the question.

Luke shrugged. "The state you were in…you could've gone somewhere, to someone more familiar. I mean, I don't know everything about you, but I know you and Oracle are close. Why me?"

Cass stared at him for a long moment. She smiled slowly, almond eyes radiating warmth. "I know you won't hurt me."

Lucas' breathing stuttered. Felt like she'd just decked him in the gut with a look. He had to make his lungs work again.

"That," he said softly, "might be the sweetest thing anyone's ever said to me."

She smiled a little wider and looked down. "Sorry I missed dinner."

Luke barked a small laugh and shrugged. "That's the life." He smiled and sidled up next to her, looking down into her eyes. "We'll get around to it."

It was the waning days of winter, but the rooftop air was still cold and biting. Yet the longer Luke held her gaze, the warmer he felt. Standing in place, but it felt like he was running. He chuckled and looked away, bumped her arm with his elbow.

She bumped him back.

…

The Red Hood felt something in the air change. He glanced back to see Batman approaching.

"Don't you have your own angle to cover?" Red asked, looking down his binos. He scoffed. "Or are you just keeping an eye on me?"

He didn't reply for a while. "I never lost you."

Red stiffened and met his eyes. "You already knew I was the one with the kid that night."

Batman got a little closer. "And that you saved Tim the night of the wedding. I've known about your cooperation with Drake—here and abroad." He sighed. "I know you helped the regime change in Qurac."

He stared at Bruce. "And? No lecture? That's a lot of broken rules, especially in 'your city,' to have no intervention."

Then he saw something he didn't expect: a smile. It was tiny and almost invisible in this dark lighting, but it was there.

"I think I'm just glad you're okay," Bruce said quietly. He looked over and met Jason's eyes. "Are you okay?"

Jason huffed and looked away. This was not how he imagined tonight going. Despite the wind, everything was warm and uncomfortable and he couldn't look at Bruce. The last time they'd spoken face to face like this was the night of Bruce's proposal to Diana—the night Scarecrow almost took over the city and exposed his identity. Being heavily dosed up on fear toxin didn't help Bruce's paranoid tendencies, and having Damian captured with a gun to his head was all the leverage Crane needed to expose him.

So Caden locked Bruce in his own containment cell and stole his identity for the night. That was when Jason's partnership with Caden had really started. They had always shared a strange sort of kinship, towing the gray line as they did. Keeping Bruce from outing himself and taking Scarecrow down was their first actual team-up. Jason hadn't stayed long after Crane was in custody, just enough to see that Bruce was on the mend—and Diana had accepted his proposal. From then on, he and Drake stayed in fairly regular contact.

For a moment, Jason suspected that Caden was feeding Bruce intel on him. But then, that really wasn't his style.

"I'm fine," he said finally. "Just staying busy. You know how it is."

"Yeah." Bruce didn't speak for a while. "Don't forget to come up for air every now and then. I learned that lesson the hard way. Repeatedly."

This was…extremely uncomfortable. And weird. And awkward.

Jason cleared his throat. "Alfred still killing it in the kitchen?"

"Of course. I think he still misses your appetite." A smirk. "Though I think Jason's been picking up the slack." His smile vanished almost instantly.

Red winced. "How is he?"

"Medicated and unconscious. I'm just glad the Amazons have an anesthetic that works on him. Even the strongest medical anesthesia doesn't keep him under for long."

"Probably not the first time they've needed to keep one of theirs sleeping."

"Right."

"Weird…he really is one of theirs now."

Batman smiled ruefully. "The irony isn't lost on me, especially given how his first visit went."

Red grimaced. "Yeah. He told me about that last year. No details, but—no powers, bitter attitude—I read between the lines."

"Diana still hadn't forgiven her mother until a few weeks ago. Apparently the Amazons are fully behind him now."

Jason huffed and shook his head. He vacillated over something his younger namesake told him that night. "Jason had a lot to say about our future together. Said I trained him for this mission."

Bruce blinked and tilted his head. "It would certainly explain his mouth."

He coughed. "He also said you don't trust me."

Bruce was silent for a bit. "Not fully, no."

"Then why leave me on the loose if you knew where I was?"

"After everything that happened to you—Joker, the Lazarus Pit, the League—I thought you deserved the space to figure yourself out without anyone else in your ear." Bruce met his eyes through the mask, something about them uncomfortably piercing. "I don't trust you because I don't know you anymore." His lips pursed. "But I want to. You're my son."

Jason felt his gut twist. For many reasons, he was very glad his mask was faceless.

Bruce touched his cowl and pulled it off for a moment. "I've done a lot of thinking the last couple years. Thinking and growing…reevaluating the things in my life, the priorities that really matter." He frowned. "For years, I only ever had the mission. It was the one thing keeping me going."

Jason waved to Bruce's suit. "Doesn't look like that's changed much."

Bruce shrugged. "Maybe not. But this family is the mission that makes it all matter." He got closer and grabbed Jason's shoulders. "When this is over…come home. You've been out in the cold long enough."

For the briefest of moments, the rooftop faded away. He was standing in an alley, grime on his face, tire iron in his hands. They were still eye to eye, but Bruce was on his knees. Then he blinked, and a swell of bitterness drowned the nostalgia.

Jason shrugged. "Maybe I like it that way."

Bruce's lips pursed. "Maybe you do." He let go and stepped back. "I thought the same thing for years. It took Damian and Diana for me to learn that I just thought it was safer that way." His head shook. "It wasn't."

"At least you were free to make your own choices."

He smiled ruefully. "Except I wasn't. Fear had me paralyzed long before I started a family." He put his cowl back on. "Take all the time you need, Jason. We'll all be waiting for you when you're ready."

Jason said nothing.

Batman tensed for a moment, then tapped his gauntlet. "Gordon's men are getting in position. Won't be long now."

"What's the plan, Father?" Robin asked.

"We'll be the spearhead," Batman said. "Enter quietly, take out their lookouts, then go loud and get their attention while Gordon's team is breaching. Revenant, prioritize any computers on-site, anything that might have a record of Elliot's involvement or location. Robin, Black Bat—you're on the fighting pit. Keep the trainers and handlers in the building. The Hood and I will breach the main offices, find out who's running this operation and how we can use them against Elliot. If everything goes according to plan, we'll get this done with minimal mess and no casualties."

Red scoffed. "Since when does anything go according to plan?"

They could hear the grin in Rev's reply. "That's the fun part."

Batman turned to Jason. "One more thing. This is my show, my rules. Understand?"

Jason stared back at him, jaw tight. "Yeah."

Batman nodded and faced the building, waiting for the go-ahead from Gordon.

The Red Hood reached into his duffel and whipped out a Benelli M4. He figured Bruce would hamstring him on this op somehow, so he came prepared: two bandoliers' worth of high-power beanbag rounds. They wouldn't kill (unless he shot someone in the trachea), but each had enough gunpowder behind it to break bone, and with the semi-auto M4, he could unload eight shells in two seconds. Body armor or not, no one was shrugging off that much kinetic energy without being on something. Speaking of…

"Hey speedster," Red called.

"'Sup?"

"While you're at it, make sure none of 'em reach that Venom stockpile when we breach. We don't need anyone juicing up and complicating this."

"Yeah, good call."

In his peripheral vision, Jason caught the faintest hint of a smile from Bruce. He did a double-take. Bruce never smiled under the cowl. These last years really had changed him.

Batman tapped his earpiece and nodded. "Understood." He turned to Red. "They're in position. SWAT moves in on our go."

The Hood loaded one more round into the shotgun's loading gate and racked the bolt closed, then slung it over his shoulder to hang at his side. "Then let's get this party started."

As one, they leapt from their perches and swung into the fray.

AN: The Red Hood returns! It should be obvious by now that Jason Todd is one of my favorite Bats, so no surprise he's made an appearance—and will be making a lot more as this story progresses.

Next up, busting a dogfighting ring and making a new friend.

Drake out.

Formatting notes:
– Internal Thoughts/Flashback
– "Super-Hearing/Surveillance/Hallucination"
– Telepathy/Divine Speech
– "{Translation}"
– [Text Message]